This Moment, This Joy
by Maya5392
Summary: It was just plain, simple curiosity. Law asks his question, and Robin answers. With all her heart. Oneshot, nakamaship


**Disclaimer:** One Piece doesn't belong to me, but to the Mangaka that I admire, Odacchi, aka Oda Eiichiro. The cover picture doesn't belong to me. Caesar's name is officially romanized "Caesar Crown".

Italics like _/this/_ are for flashbacks. _**This**_ is Law's thoughts.

* * *

 **「This Moment, This Joy」**

* * *

"... I've had enough..."

"Pardon, Torao-kun?"

"... I've had enough of this crew!" He said, standing up and raising his two arms, his face looking like he went through hell. Perhaps not so much of an exaggeration, given his current situation.

The dark blue-haired woman that's just sitting next to him at the mast was a little surprised at first, but then wore her usual calm, charming smile. Meanwhile, the people who were messing all around on the green, grassy lawn stopped for a second to stare at him. _Only for a second_ , though.

It was a bright, fine-weathered day(afternoon) on the Thousand Sunny, which was very fortunate, considering where they were. The New World, the place that makes people say that the first half was 'paradise', and that's saying something.

After getting out of Punk Hazard, the crew(+guests) were now enjoying the peaceful moment on the sea, _while it lasts_. Currently, everyoneーexcluding Robin and Lawーwere now playing around with their prisoner, Caesar Crown.

Ah, yes. The once renowned Caesar Crown, with a bounty of 300 million Beri for being a mad scientist, was currently having sticks shoved up his nose. Life is quite cruel to mad people, no? By the way, the one that suggested this game of 'shoving-sticks-up-his-nose' was none other than 'Straw Hat Luffy', captain of this pirate crew, with a bounty of 400 million Beri on his head.

"Yo, Torao! Why're you being so loud? Come and play with us!" Luffy suggested cheerfully. Too cheerful for the surgeon's liking.

"Shut up... Stop goofing around with our hostage..." Law could only mutter as he massaged his temples, ignoring Caesar's pleading eyes and earning a small smile from Robin.

"Your loss then. Ushishishishishishi!"

・

・

・

"... How do you put up with this everyday?"

"Hm? Oh... It's not that unbearable, you know. Perhaps you'll get used to it, Torao-kun."

"... I hope not."

The two just looked at the young captain, whom bore a grin so wide it could split his face.

"... Nico-ya."

"Yes, Torao-kun?"

"How did you join this crew?"

Robin turned to look at the surgeon, her face bearing surprise. She had not expected that question for sure. "Whyー"

"ーDo I ask? It's just that, you're a highly wanted person."

Seeing no comment, Law decided to continue, taking the silence as a question itself.

"So, I was sure that you're used to working alone. I was wondering how you've come to join this crew and decided to stay altogether. You feel like the type to be a lone wolf, always moving, never staying in one place.

You know the risk of doing so, and yet you're here right now."

Law looked at Robin, whose attention was on Luffy right now. Currently the boy was making a racket and smiling like no tomorrow, as always. Law couldn't help but think that it was the reason Robinーno, the whole crewーwas smiling as well.

"... How I joined... Eh...?" Robin said softly, still looking at her captain with a tender look.

"Ah... You don't have to say it if you don't want to...!" Law said quickly, afraid he offended the woman.

"No, it's... Okay, really. It's just that... Torao-kun, I've never really thought about it that much, why I had joined. Truth to be told, it was originally a spur of the moment."

Law looked shocked at this revelation. He never thought the woman to be one doing things on a whim. Apparently Robin could read his thoughts, so she continued with a smallerーbut still clearーvoice. Law could tell what she's about to say is somewhat private.

"I was in an organization that dealt with... Assassinations." she gave a dark smile at this, to which Law tried to ignore his gut feeling that was screaming 'RUN NOW SOLDIER!'. It didn't help that she gave a small 'ufufufufufu...' as well.

"It was all for protection, really. And some parts for personal benefits like my intentions. At the time, this organization was this crew's enemy."

Robin took a sneak at Law's face. The man looked half-shocked, the other half was trying to conceal this fact. She couldn't help but giggle at the man's attempt of keeping up his Poker Face.

"A lot of stuff has happened. And in the end, Luffy had took down the organization's bossーmy _partner_ ーlike he always did." She had a wistful smile at this. From nostalgia? It's not everyday you talk about a dear friend. "Always."

"... I didn't owe him anything, and I was his enemy. That fact wouldn't have changed even if the organization was gone. I...

Back then, I was at the end of the line, and I was ready to jump off of it. I lost everything, my dreams, my...loved ones... There wasn't anything left tying me to life. And yet..."

Her eyes closed, hair flowing with the wind that just picked up. Law silently waited for her to continue, releasing a breath he held unknowingly. The woman was fine with sharing her story, and she had no reason to. He was thankful for that.

"... He saved me then." Her blue eyes opened, going in the direction of her beloved captain. "He picked me up, and told me that he didn't care."

"Huh?" Law said in disbelief. The captain was more selfish than he thought(how much did he thought?)

"Fufu. See, he didn't care that I meant nothing to him. He didn't care that I was his enemy. He didn't care... If I wanted to die. But I'm sure... That he didn't save me just because I was lying there. He didn't save me to have a favor.

He was heavily injured then, and there was also someone else. I... Still don't know why he saved me, and I'm not sure if _he himself_ knows. But I know... He could've left me, he had no obligation to save a strangerーon top of that, an enemyーbut he still did."

They were in comfortable silence for a moment. The world was still spinning and everyone was still chattering noisily(save for Zoro, doing you-know-what), but around the two was a calming atmosphere.

"... Before I knew it, they became dear to me. The ship(nakama) we had before and this ship, Sunny, was my home. They were my precious nakama, and life... Got brighter.

If I never met Luffy... I would've never feel like I'm _living_."

"... That so..."

・

・

・

"... You know, Torao-kun, I don't completely know everyone's story of how they're here right now. But apparently, excluding me, everyone had been recruited personally by Luffy. And they had all rejected."

"Hah?!" That got Law's attention.

"Fufu. Apparently he was always outrageous, even back then. He met them, took an interest in them, and he _decided_ they'll be nakama."

"D-decided?"

"Decided."

Silence. The two just sat there comfortably on the deck, with Law wondering how many moments of silence had they already had?

It was already evening, and everyone scattered to do their own business. Sanji was cooking, Nami was drawing charts, Zoro was training, Franky and Usopp were in the factory, and Brook was currently amusing Chopper and Luffy. The former was originally mixing medicines, but couldn't refuse his captain's invitation.

"Of course, they would decline. Why would you just accept an invitation to become a pirate of all things? And on top of that, to have such a weak-looking captain?"

"You have a sharp tongue, Nico-ya..." Law muttered, finding his composure long gone. He was in this woman'sーand this crew'sーpace before he knew what was going on.

(It wasn't a bad feeling however)

"Fufu. But still... That encounter... Changed all of their lives forever."

"For the better?"

Robin turned her head. She wasn't expecting such a question. The surgeon still had that uninterested look of his, but his eyes were somewhat serious.

"Do you think that meeting him, and becoming a pirateーa _criminalー_ was for the better?"

"... Yes."

* * *

Now, Law was sitting at the mast, alone, standing guard for Doflamingo. There was still some people on the deck, with the same purpose, but they...weren't exactly _doing_ their job properly.

 _/"Not the part about becoming a criminal, I mean."/_

Strange. That conversation finished over 9 hours ago, yet... It feels like he's had it just now(and/or still having it).

 _/"But the fact that we ever met, and joined him. For him..._

 _Being a criminal doesn't matter."_

 _"In what way?"_

 _"Both. He doesn't care if we're criminals, and if for his sake..._

 _We would gladly become one. That is how I feel, and this feeling won't ever change."_

 _"What if he betrays you?"_

 _To this, the woman stopped for a moment, but then just smiled softly. The trust and the loyalty in that smile can't be measured. No words needed to be said about how she feels./_

He didn't exactly know how to feel. Hearing those words... Hearing the feelings in them... They left him baffled.

 _/"We... All have dreams. Dreams that we want to fulfill, dreams that we_ **live** _for. Don't you?"/_

 _ **I do.** _

His heart clenched painfully. His hands balled to fists by his side.

 _ **Corazon. Cora-san...**_

 _/"... And your point is?" Law asked, his tone slightly changing. Oh, he just hoped that tears haven't begun toー_

 _"Luffy helped us fulfill those dreams. In our darkest times, he came, and reached his hand out to us, with a grin on his face."_

 _"And even after rejecting his offer, in the end you guys still took that hand again?"_

 _"... Yes. Yes, we did. I've told you before that I don't know exactly everyone's circumstances, but I did hear some part of it."_

 _"Circumstances...? Like what?"_

 _"The difficulties they were in before we all met Luffy. Take Zoro for example, he was going to be executed."_

 _"E-executed? That Zoro-ya..."_

 _"Apparently it was for a nonsensical reason, specifically because he wounded the pride a snobbish son of a Marine captain whom was feared in his base. Well, somewhat."_

 _"O-oh. A-and then?"_

 _"Luffy bailed him out, with the condition he becomes his nakama. Of course, Zoro refused."_

 _"Ahh, how alike of Strawhat-ya. And then?"_

 _"In the end, somehow Zoro joined. And so, they set out on a small boat."_

 _"Hah!? To the sea!?"_

 _"To the sea."/_

 _ **I thought I saw to what extent can his carelessness go, but apparently I was wrong.** _ Law pinched the bridge of his nose. Now he was starting to question _his_ own decision _._

 _ **But...**_

 _/"The others... Also had special circumstances. In a way, something had bound them to where the were, preventing them to fulfill their dreams. Most of the time, it was themselves._

 _Usopp, apparently, was still somewhat affected by the death of a family member._

 _Sanji still felt indebted to his savior, and at the same time, guilty._

 _Nami was forced to workーbe a slaveーto a pirate controlling her home island._

 _Chopper also, hasn't gotten over the death of someone important._

 _Franky still felt guilty of himself for being... Powerless._

 _And Brook... His shadow was stolen by Gekko Moriah."_

 _Law flinched a bit. Gekko Moriah, a former Shichibukai, who once went up against Kaidouーthis alliance's purpose._

 _Though she noticed his unsaid question about how did the skeleton get mixed up with such a man, Robin continued on with her story._

 _"They were all bound to one place, despite the fact the seaーtheir dreamーwas just a few steps away, they couldn't go. There were times they felt like giving the dreams of their life, just to stay here, and do what they had to. They... We weren't free._

 _... Until Luffy came."/_

He closed his eyes, the sentence playing over and over again in his mind.

 _We weren't free._

 _/"... If not for Luffy, we would never have been free._

 _We would have still been bound by the invisible chains we, and this world cast on us."/_

 _ **Father, Mother, Sister, Lamy...**_

He opened his eyes, looking up to the sky that is as black as his future could have been.

But even so, even in the midst of darkness, he found a small, twinkling star.

 _ **Cora-san.**_

 _/"... You truly feel that way."_

 _It wasn't a question. And it needed no answer._

 _She smiled._

 _At that moment, she said one last fact to him._

 _"ROOBIIIIIIIIN~~!"_

 _They both turned their heads towards Luffy, whom was holding his afternoon snack. He had his signature grin plastered all over his face. Also, some jelly._

 _"Sanji made some really delicious stuff! Come join us~!"_

 _"Yeah, Robin! The deserts Sanji just made are really sweet and yummy~ Also nutritious!" Chopper piped in, appearing behind Luffy, fork with a green jelly on hand._

 _"Robin-chwan~ I made this delicious parfait just for you~!" Somewhere on the second floor, Sanji's voice could be heard, all lovestruck._

 _"Ufufufu. Wait just a minute, I'm coming."_

 _And Robin walked on the stairs, carrying with Chopper whilst listening to Luffy's rant, all the while bearing a smile._

 _The smile that showed there's none other place she'd rather be but here._

 _"Torao-kun, are you coming too?"_

 _Three pairs of eyes looked at him expectantly, two twinkling._

 _"... I'll come up soon."_

 _And so he did./_

* * *

"Torao!"

While he was still not that comfortable with the 'nickname', Law turned around, seeing the younger captain running towards him.

"What is it, Strawhat-ya? I thought you fell asleep?"

"Oh! You see, I wanted to ask if you're all comfy on the Sunny! You looked all annoyed this afternoon, after all."

Law was somewhat surprised. He noticed? _**Well, what do you know...**_

"I'm fine. I'm just somewhat worried about the plan is all."

"Well don't be! My nakama will have all of that covered! They're the best!"

"... You truly think so."

"Yep! I can always count on them, and they always go along with my selfishness!"

Now Law didn't know what to shocked more about. The fact that the boy knows he's selfish, or the fact he doesn't know most of the time he drags them along with his whims.

Nevertheless, Law chuckled.

"Hey, Torao! If you need anything, ask me too, okay?"

"Sure, but why?"

"Shishishishi! 'Why?'"

Luffy turned back with a smile, and words Law probably won't forget.

Robin's words rang in his mind.

"After all, what are friends for?"

Maybe this alliance wasn't so bad after all.

・

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・

 _/"This moment, this joy... We wouldn't trade it for anything."/_

* * *

Thank you for reading my first One Piece one shot! It was on my mind for awhile, but took longer to write than I thought! I'm glad if you enjoyed it! I just love the relationship the Straw Hats have with each other! Corazon seemed like someone who would have gotten along with Luffy. It's cute how both of them are so cute.


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